Reverse: 1999

Overview

Reverse: 1999 is a free-to-play turn-based tactical RPG with gacha, developed and published by Bluepoch. It launched in mainland China on 31 May 2023 and worldwide on 26 October 2023.

OtaHub's take

The story takes place in an alternate history where humans live alongside Arcanists, people with magical abilities. On the last day of 1999, a phenomenon called the Storm appears and rewinds time to eras across the 20th century. You play as Vertin the Timekeeper, who travels through eras with Sonetto to learn what the Storm is and to save Arcanists from being swept away by it.

Battles use skill cards in turns. You bring up to four Arcanists into a fight, and outside combat you build an island called the Wilderness inside Vertin's suitcase. The game has full English voice acting and Live 2D animation, and runs on iOS, Android and Windows with cross-play. The Steam page lists the PC release as 8 October 2024, while Bluepoch's press release gave 10 October 2024.

Verdict

Reverse: 1999 suits players who like a distinctive visual style, a layered story and tactical combat that does not need fast reflexes. Since it is a gacha game, set a spending limit before you play.